BIS Psyche & Soul 39: PERSONALITY DISORDERS

https://anchor.fm/boscom/episodes/2-39-Psyche--Soul--86-etl1tr

Hello, this is Jose Parappully, Salesian priest and clinical psychologist at Sumedha Centre for Psychospiritual Wellbeing at Jeolikote, Uttarakhand, with another edition of Psyche & Soul.

In this edition I shall explore another group of mental illness, namely, Personality Disorders which take a toll especially on our interpersonal relationships.

What are Personality Disorders?

Personality is a complex mixture of biologically based temperament, the internalized record of the events and experiences that have shaped our character, the way we see ourselves and others, the conflicts involving wishes and defenses against those wishes that direct and motivate us, and our vulnerabilities and aspirations. These varied dimensions and characteristics define who we are as persons and form our personality styles.

Our personality is built on various personality traits each of develop, mostly unconsciously through our genetic (inborn endowments and our relational an environment experiences.  These “traits are enduring patterns of perceiving, relating to, and thinking about the environment and ourselves that are exhibited in a wide range of social and personal contexts.

Sometimes these personality features become maladaptive and inflexible, detrimental to our health and wellbeing and significantly impair our ability to function effectively in daily life, affect our relationships and cause us much subjective distress. When this happens, these impaired and maladaptive personality features move from a style to a disorder – a personality disorder. This impairment is often unconscious, the person affected bot being aware of it. The resulting distress is often suffered not merely by the person himself or herself but by those around too.

A Personality Disorder, as defined by the DSM “is an enduring pattern of inner experience and behaviour that deviates markedly from the individual’s culture, is pervasive and inflexible, has on onset in adolescence or early adulthood, is stable over time, and leads to significant subjective distress or functional impairment.”

Enduring here means that the characteristics are not transient, manifesting only now and then, but is always present and manifests across a broad range of personal situations.. These characteristics are not in keeping with what a culture expects of healthy individuals. These characteristics are quite well embedded in the personality and are not easily amenable to change. They have become part and parcel of the personality and follows the person wherever he or she goes. The most important criteria that establishes a personality disorder, and distinguishes it from merely personality style, is that it causes significant distress to the person and impairs his or her ability to function effectively in daily life.

These maladaptive features usually become recognizable adolescence or early adulthood. However, individuals may not recognize need for help until relatively late in life. A personality disorder may be exacerbated following the loss of significant supportive persons and other resources.

There is a high degree of psychological impairment associated with personality disorders. These include tendency toward suicide, violent aggression, self-destructive behaviour, cognitive and interpersonal impoverishment and painful isolation.

In order to be diagnosed as resulting from a personality disorder this impairment and distress has to manifest in at least two of the four dimensions of daily life:

(1)     cognition (i.e., perceiving, and interpreting self,  other people, and events)

(2)     affectivity (i.e., range, intensity, appropriateness of emotional response)

(3)     interpersonal functioning (how one deals with persons)

(4)     impulse control (the ability to manage one’s impulse to do something)

 

Which are the Personality Disorders?

The DSM-IV listed 10 different personality disorders, grouped into three clusters. These are: Paranoid, Schizoid, and Schizotypal forming Cluster A; antisocial, borderline, histrionic, and narcissistic forming cluster B and the avoidant,  dependent and obsessive-compulsive forming cluster C.

Cluster A brings together the odd and the eccentric personalities; Cluster B brings together the dramatic and emotional types and Cluster C includes the anxious and fearful types.

Here is a brief description of the 10 Personality Disorders as given in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - IV or the DSM –IV.

·         Paranoid Personality Disorder is a pattern of distrust and suspiciousness such that others’ motives are interpreted as malevolent.

 ·         Schizoid Personality Disorder is a pattern of detachment from social relationships and a restricted range of emotional expression.

 ·         Schizotypal Personality Disorder is a pattern of social and interpersonal deficits marked by acute discomfort with, and reduced capacity for, close relationships, as well as by cognitive or perceptual distortions, and eccentricities of behaviour.

 ·         Antisocial Personality Disorder is a pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others.

 ·         Borderline Personality Disorder is a pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impassivity.

 ·         Histrionic Personality Disorder is a pattern of excessive emotionality and attention seeking.

 ·         Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, and lack of empathy.

 ·         Avoidant Personality Disorder is a pattern of social inhibition, feelings of inadequacy, and hypersensitivity to negative evaluation.

 ·         Dependent Personality Disorder is a pattern of submissive and clinging behaviour related to an excessive need to be taken care of.

 ·         Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder is a pattern of preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and mental and interpersonal control at the expense of flexibility, openness, and efficiency.

While continuing with the DSM –IV model of Personality disorders, the latest version of the DSM (the 5^th edition) gives an alternate model of Personality Disorders and reduces them from 10 to 6. Many leading personality psychologists do not accept this new model. They find it seriously flawed, based not on clinical models but research models which are not helpful in clinical/therapeutic work.

In the next few podcasts I shall present some the more frequent and troublesome personality Disorders as presented in DSM IV.

Introspection and Prayer

Sit quietly for a while with what you heard in this podcast, especially with the descriptions of the 10 Personality Disorders. Can you recognise these characters in you or in anyone around you? If in yourself, how do you feel about it? If in others, how does it affect your relationships with them?

Then sit for a while in the presence of our God who knows you through and through and is interested in your wellbeing. Talk to God about all that bothers you about yourself and others you relate to, and listen to what God has to tell you in response.

Have a safe, healthy and happy weekend. Be blessed.

Thank you for listening/Reading.

Pictures: curtsey G

Jose Parappully SDB, PhD

sumedhacentre@gmail.com 

 

Psyche & Soul 38 : POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISRODER (PTSD)

 Podcast link:

https://anchor.fm/boscom/episodes/2-38-Psyche--Soul--84-et443k

 

Hello, this is Jose Parappully, Salesian priest and clinical psychologist at Sumedha Centre for Psychospiritual Wellbeing at Jeolikote, Uttarakhand, with another edition of Psyche & Soul.

 

In this edition I shall explore Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, commonly known as PTSD: causes, symptoms and treatment..

What Is PTSD?

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious mental condition that can develop after a person has experienced or witnessed an intensely traumatic or terrifying event in which there was serious physical or emotional harm or threat, accompanied by intense fear, helplessness, or horror. Such events include sexual or physical assault, the unexpected death of a loved one, an accident, or natural disaster. 

Most people who experience a traumatic event will have reactions that may include shock, anger, nervousness, fear, and even guilt. These reactions keep the person suffering from it from going about their life in a normal expected way.

When a person goes through something traumatic, his or her brain triggers a “flight-or-fight” which raises the stress levels in the body. Most people recover on their own after a while, but some remain in hyper-aroused state and develop posttraumatic stress disorder.

PTSD Symptoms

The Symptoms of PTSD often are grouped into four main categories:

Reliving: This is the most common symptom of PTSD. People with PTSD repeatedly relive the traumatic ordeal in a very vivid and distressing way. Anything that reminds them of the event triggers intense distress and physiological reactions. This includes flashbacks where the person acts or feels as if the event were recurring in the here-and-now; nightmares about the event; and repetitive and distressing intrusive images or other sensory impressions from the event.

Avoidance: The person with PTSD may avoid people, places, thoughts, or situations that may remind them of the trauma. They often try hard, sometimes desperately, to push memories of the event out of their mind but these memories tend to intrude into consciousness unbidden.

On the other hand, many ruminate excessively about the event, questioning about why the event happened to them, about how it could have been prevented, or about how they could take revenge.

Hyperarousal: PTSD sufferers also experience symptoms of hyperarousal including hypervigilance for threat, exaggerated startle responses, irritability, and outbursts of anger or crying, and difficulty concentrating, and sleep problems. They can be "jumpy" or easily startled. The person may also suffer physical symptoms, such as increased blood pressure and heart rate, rapid breathing, muscle tension, nausea, and diarrhea.

Emotional Numbing: This includes lack of ability to experience feelings, feeling detached from other people, giving up previously significant activities, and amnesia for significant parts of the event. Since it is hard for the person only to numb only a particular distressing signal, they tend to numb all feelings and show themselves to be somewhat feelings. Nothing touches them emotionally. They are characterised by hat is known as flat affect.

Variations in Risk

Everyone reacts to traumatic events differently. Each person is unique in their ability to manage fear, stress and the threat posed by a traumatic event or situation. For that reason, not everyone who experiences a trauma will develop PTSD. Also, the type of help and support a person receives from friends, family members, and professionals following the trauma may impact the development of PTSD or the severity of symptoms.

A person is more likely to develop PTSD after a traumatic event if he or she has a history of other mental health problems, has blood relatives with mental health problems, or has a history of alcohol or drug abuse.

Symptoms of PTSD often develop immediately after the traumatic event but in some the onset of symptoms may be delayed. Women are more likely to develop PTSD than men. This may be due to the fact that women are more likely to be victims of domestic violence, abuse, and rape, all of which are very traumatic and quite frequent in our society.

PTSD is a treatable disorder even when problems present many years after the traumatic event.

PTSD Treatment

The goal of PTSD treatment is to reduce the emotional and physical symptoms, to improve daily functioning, and to help the person better manage the consequences of the event that triggered the disorder. Treatment for PTSD may involve medication, psychotherapy or both.

Medication

Doctors use certain antidepressant medications to treat PTSD -- to control the feelings of anxiety and its associated symptoms. Certain blood pressure medicines are also sometimes used to control particular symptoms

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy for PTSD involves helping the person learn skills to manage symptoms and develop ways of coping. Therapy also aims to teach the person and their family about the disorder, and help the person work through the fears associated with the traumatic event. A variety of psychotherapy approaches are used to treat people with PTSD, including:

·         Cognitive behavioral therapy, which involves learning to recognize and change thought patterns that lead to troublesome emotions, feelings, and behavior.

·         Exposure therapy, a type of behavioral therapy that involves having the person relive the traumatic event, or exposing the person to objects or situations that cause anxiety. This is done in a well-controlled and safe environment. Exposure therapy helps the person confront the fear of dealing with the event or approaching the situation and gradually become more comfortable with events and situations that are frightening and causing anxiety.

·         Psychodynamic therapy  focuses on helping the person examine personal values and the emotional conflicts caused by the traumatic event.

·         Family therapy is useful because the behaviour of the person with PTSD can have an effect on other family members.

·         Group therapy helps by providing the person a trusting environment to share thoughts, fears, and feelings with other people who have experienced traumatic events.

·         Eye Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an effective form of psychotherapy that is designed to alleviate distress associated with traumatic memories and other symptoms of PTSD.

PTSD Complications

PTSD can cause problems in every aspect of one’s life, including one’s job, relationships, health, and everyday activities. It may also make a person more likely to develop other mental health problems, such as: Depression and anxiety; drug or alcohol abuse; eating disorders, and suicidal thoughts and actions.

PTSD Recovery Outlook

Recovery from PTSD is a gradual and ongoing process. Symptoms of PTSD seldom disappear completely, but they can be controlled. Treatment can lead to fewer and less intense symptoms, as well as a greater ability to manage feelings related to the trauma. Treatment can help people learn to manage it more effectively.

Introspection and Prayer

PTSD can cause, as we saw above, much distress to those afflicted with the illness and their dear ones, friends and colleagues.

We could stay for a while with whatever the information provided in this podcast and our own experiences related to the disorder evoke in us, and turn to our compassionate God who has our health and wellbeing at heart, and pray for healing for ourselves and others, as well as for wisdom and guidance to deal with situations that the illness creates. We could alternately just sit silently before God in the awareness of the traumas we carry and allow God to heal and transform us.

 

Have pleasant weekend. Be safe. Be healthy. Be blessed.

Thank you for listening/reading.

Pictures: Courtesy google Images

Jose Parappully SDB, PHD

sumedhacentre@gmail.com 

 

 

 

Psyche & Soul 37: ANXIETY DISORDERS

 Podcast link:

 https://anchor.fm/boscom/episodes/2-37-Psyche--Soul--81-esduqh

Hello, this is Jose Parappully, Salesian priest and clinical psychologist at Sumedha Centre for Psychospiritual Wellbeing at Jeolikote, Uttarakhand, with another edition of Psyche & Soul.

 

In this weekend’s edition, I shall present anxiety disorders from which very many people suffer.

Anxiety is the body’s response to worry and fear. Anxiety operates on many different levels and to different degrees. There is a wide range in how deeply anxiety affects us and to what extent it interferes with our quality of life. Accordingly there are different anxiety disorders.

Causes of Anxiety Disorders

Genetic (inherited) factors contribute in some degree to anxiety, just as they do in other mental illness. Brain chemicals called neurotransmitters, as well as a pair of structures inside the brain called the amygdalae, seem to play a big role. Personality, experiences and environmental situations also contribute.

 

There are a number of medical disorders and the medications used to treat them that can cause anxiety. Some of these include: hyperthyroidism, heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disorders, emphysema, and asthma

At the root of anxiety is fear that works mostly at an unconscious level. According to MacKinnon & Michels, authors of the classic text The Psychiatric Interview in Clinical Practice,  anxiety “is the psychological response to danger, and is often seen when the individual feels that there is an ongoing threat to his [or her] welfare” The source of this threat may often lie at the unconscious level.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

It is quite natural for us to worry during stressful times. But some of us feel tense and anxious day after day, even with little to worry about, and without any perceived trigger to provoke it. When this lasts for 6 months or longer, it would be diagnosed as Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), which is the most common of anxiety disorders. What sets generalized anxiety disorder apart from ordinary worrying is the feeling that we can't stop worrying. Worry becomes chronic, almost second nature to us. This will begin to affect our social, work, and family life.

Persons of any age, even children, can develop generalized anxiety disorder. It tends to appear gradually, with the first symptoms most likely to happen between childhood and middle age. An estimated 31% of all adults will experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their life. Anxiety disorders are more prevalent in women (23%) than in men (14%) worldwide.

The main symptom GAD is a constant and exaggerated sense of tension and anxiety. We may not be able to pinpoint a reason why we feel tense. Or we may worry excessively and frequently about ordinary things, such as bills to be paid, our relationships, the safety of our children, or our health. This can lead to sleep problems and distortions in thinking. Poor sleep, in turn, can lead to irritability and strain relationships. It can also lead to restlessness, fatigue, feeling on edge, and difficulty in concentrating. Severe cases can hamper work and daily activities.

When we suffer from GAD, we are vulnerable to developing depression, alcoholism, or drug addiction. Anxiety disorders can also cause physical problems. These include: muscle tension or pain, headaches, nausea, stomach upsets and trembling. we can also develop other disorders that involve anxiety such as panic disorder, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder

Panic Disorder

Panic disorder involves sudden attacks of terror triggered by an object or situation that can reach their peak within minutes. Persons who experience panic attacks may try to avoid situations or constantly worry about when the next panic attack might happen.

Symptoms can include a pounding heart, sweating, dizziness, nausea, trembling, shortness of breath, chest pain and a feeling of being out of control. We may think we are having a heart attack, or facing imminent danger or destruction, or even dying.

Phobias

A phobia is an intense fear or apprehensiveness about specific objects or situations that in reality are not likely to cause any harm. Even when some of these objects or situations may have reason to cause fear, the fear felt by the individual is disproportionate to the actual danger posed.

Common phobias include fear of heights, closed-in spaces like elevators, flying, water or creatures like ants and spiders. One woman I know is so afraid of flying that she never takes a plane, and so does not do any international travel, though she would love to visit many places.

During the height of the Covid pandemic, many people would not leave the home even for essential work, for intense fear of catching the contagion.

Social Anxiety Disorder

Social Anxiety Disorder is a common specific form of phobia. Those afflicted with this disorder feel panicky and self-conscious even in ordinary social situations. They are intensely anxious about being judged or rejected in social situations. Even when they realize their worry is unreasonable, they cannot avoid being anxious. Symptoms include a sense of dread before social events, with sweating, blushing, nausea, or trouble speaking during the events.

 

There are two other common disorders that have anxiety as one of the key symptoms but are no longer classified as anxiety disorders in the DSM-5 (The Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, volume 5). These re Obsessive Compulsive Disorder or OCD, and Post Traumatic Disorder or PTSD.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder or OCD is a disorder where individuals have recurring, unwanted thoughts, ideas, or sensations (obsessions); or the urge to do something repetitively (compulsions).  Some people have both obsessions and compulsions.

When we suffer from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), we will have troubling thoughts that we feel we cannot control. We may repeat a name, phrase, or behavior because we fear something bad will happen if don’t do that. We feel the need to repeat actions again and again, such as washing hands or checking that the door is locked. We may be obsessed about dressing in a certain order or count objects for no good reason. They may for example lay out items clothing in a particular order, pick them up in the exact order in which they were laid out, believing if the order is changed some mishap will happen to them. They may also feel they have to touch a particular object before they open the door, in order to ward of any danger.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) arises in the aftermath of some terrifying event, such as physical attacks in which we fear we may killed, severe sexual abuse, involvement in terrifying accident, or terrorist attack such as the one on the World Trade Centre..

Symptoms may happen months or longer after the event. These may include recurrent vivid flashbacks and nightmares about the event, Avoidance of things related to the event: people, places, or situations and a loss of interest in activities that were once enjoyable.

Treatment

The treatment for anxiety disorders follow the same model as described in dealing with depression and schizophrenia.

Antidepressant drugs, especially the newer variety, work well to lower anxiety. However, some of these drugs carry a risk of dependence.

Psychotherapy, especially cognitive behavioral therapy is very effective in treating anxiety. The focus here is on identifying negative thoughts and changing them. Since feelings and behaviour are primarily triggered by our thoughts, when we change our negative thoughts to more positive ones, our mood changes.  Clients are also taught calming techniques, such as meditation, that help them to calm themselves.

A few simple changes in our daily living can help. Caffeine, sugar, and even some medicines, can boost anxiety symptoms. Getting enough rest and eating healthy foods have a positive effect on anxiety. Use of relaxation techniques, such as meditation also help. Exercise can refresh the body and calm the mind.

Anxiety vs. Depression

It is important to note that there is a difference between anxiety and depression. In a very basic sense, anxiety is an excessive feeling of worry and apprehension, while depression is excessive feelings of hopelessness and worthlessness. It is possible for a person to have both anxiety and depression at the same time.

Introspection and Prayer

Have we experienced any type of anxiety disorders described here? If so, what was the experience like?

We often find Jesus in the Gospels exhorting his disciples not to be anxious. A classic case is that of the disciples caught in the storm at sea (Mark 4, 35-49). Jesus asks them “Why are you anxious?”  Elsewhere he asks them not to worry about their life, for their heavenly father provides them with everything (Mathew 6, 25-34).

We could read or contemplate any of these passages, stay with whatever these evoke in us, and spend time in the company of Jesus who is with us here and now, assuring us there is no need to be anxious and bring to him all our worries and anxieties and ask him to calm our fears.

 

Have pleasant weekend. Be safe. Be healthy. Be blessed.

Thank you for listening/reading.

Picture: Courtesy Google Images

Jose Parappully SDB, PHD

sumedhacentre@gmail.com 

 

Psyche & Soul 36: SCHIZOPHRENIA – 3: ROOTS AND REMEDIES

 SCHIZOPHRENIA – 3: ROOTS AND REMEDIES

 

Podcast link:

https://anchor.fm/boscom/episodes/2-36-Psyche--Soul--79-ernra1

Hello, this is Jose Parappully, Salesian priest and clinical psychologist at Sumedha Centre for Psychospiritual Wellbeing at Jeolikote, Uttarakhand, with another edition of Psyche & Soul.

Last week I presented some of the major symptoms of schizophrenia. In this edition I shall explore the roots of schizophrenia and the treatment options.

Roots of Schizophrenia

As with other mental disorders, biology, genetic (inborn) factors and environment, but more especially biology, appear to be involved. Biological theories include how active and how well certain areas of the brain work, as well as problems with brain chemicals such as dopamine and glutamate. There may be structural differences too, like loss of nerve cells that result in larger fluid-filled cavities or "ventricles” in the brain.

Although genetic factors appear to contribute significantly to the onset of the disorder, most individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia have no family history of psychosis. There is also research evidence that genetic factors alone are not responsible. For example, identical twins may have the same vulnerability to schizophrenia. However, when they are brought up in different environments, one of the twins may develop schizophrenia, and the other may not.

The vulnerability potential seem to get actualised when the environment is very stressful. Studies of families of those who suffer from schizophrenia reveal a high incidence of parental psychopathology and disorders of communication which lead to high levels of stress and confusion. In fact, from a psychodynamic perspective this family dynamic is considered the trigger that actualises the vulnerability.

The bio-psycho-social model is the best accepted theory for causation of all mental illness, including schizophrenia. That is, biology (mostly functioning of the brain), psychological dispositions (genetic factors) and socio-cultural realities (the environment), all contribute to mental illness. Even though an individual may be born with a biological vulnerability toward a mental disorder, whether he or she develops it depends very much on their experiences, and the environment in which they find themselves.  

Treatment

About 20 percent of those who suffer from schizophrenia appears to have a favourable course of recovery and a small number recover completely. However, most individuals with schizophrenia require assistance in daily living and many remain chronically ill, while some experience progressive deterioration.

Most often, once developed, schizophrenia becomes a lifelong condition, but it can be controlled, and in some cases as mentioned earlier, full recovery is possible. Even when the illness persists, many individuals who have the disorder are able to live normal lives, provided they are regular with their medication and therapy. John Nash, famous M.I. T., and later, Princeton University Mathematician (on whom the Oscar winning film A Beautiful Mind is based), suffered from paranoid schizophrenia for several years and then was able to continue to produce brilliant works and was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics, the Abel Prize and other prizes and awards, and honorary doctorates from several universities.

Early intervention has a significant impact on people with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia symptoms are often worse in the early stages of the illness, which is when the risk of suicide is highest. The majority of people with schizophrenia get better over time, not worse. In fact, 20% of people will get better within five years of developing symptoms, provided treatment is sought early and maintained.

Medication

The primary mode of treatment is through medication. Prescription drugs, usually known as antipsychotics, can reduce symptoms such as abnormal thinking, hallucinations, and delusions. However, these medications often have troubling and sometimes dangerous side effects. These include: dizziness, headache, fatigue, nausea, insomnia, dry mouth, weight gain, constipation, tardive dyskinesia (repetitive involuntary movements), low blood pressure, abnormal heart rhythm. In some cases because of possible complications, blood levels have to be frequently monitored. Fortunately the newer antipsychotics have fewer and less serious side effects. Still, because of the side effects many who suffer from it stop taking medications after a while and they relapse into serious symptoms again. But in most cases, medication is a must to treat schizophrenia. The challenge is to convince those who suffer from it to be regular with their medications. When the person refuses to take medicines, caregivers often mix them with their food or drink.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy can help those who suffer from schizophrenia develop better ways to recognise and handle their problem behaviours, manage their thoughts, and improve how they relate to others. The earlier treatment is sought, the better the outcome. One of the of the most often used approach is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), in which people learn to test the reality of their thoughts and better manage symptoms, clarify confusion and overcome self-defeating thoughts. Family therapy helps to improve family members’ relationship with the person having the disorder as well relationships among members, especially to help families avoid both angry confrontations and equally harmful emotional distancing. Other forms of therapy take a psycho-educational approach that aim to improve self-care, communication, and behaviour and relationship skills in general.

Milieu Therapy

Among the treatment approaches one that shows most impact is what is known as milieu therapy, usually carried out in hospitals and community mental care centres. The idea here is to create an environment in which those who suffer from the disorder can practise number of social skills, engage in various activities including games, learn some handicrafts, and make themselves gainfully employed. They will be taught how to do everyday things, like use of public transportation, manage money, shop for groceries and other goods, or find and keep a job. They will also be taking medication and engaging in psychotherapy.

Food and Vitamins

Foods that contain important vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats are good for schizophrenia. These types of foods help support the brain and immune system, which can lower the intensity of the symptoms and enhance the body’s capacity to respond to medications.

 

There is some research that suggest certain vitamins can be helpful, especially Vitamin D, various B vitamins, Vitamin C and Vitamin E.

 

Schizophrenia can hit anyone, and the results are distressing. But great improvement or even complete recovery is possible in some cases, through a combination of medication, healthy diet, psychological support, and creating a caring environment.

Introspection and Prayer

 

Mental illness, particularly schizophrenia, can cause much distress to those afflicted with the illness and their dear ones, friends and colleagues. But as this podcast has shown it is possible for those who suffer from it to recover and lead normal lives.

We could stay for a while with whatever the information provided in this podcast and our own experiences related to the illness evoke in us, and turn to our compassionate God who has our health and wellbeing at heart, and pray for healing for ourselves and others, as well as for wisdom and guidance to deal with situations that the illness creates.

 

Have pleasant weekend. Be safe. Be healthy. Be blessed.

Thank you for listening/reading.

Pictures: Courtesy google Images

Jose Parappully SDB, PHD

sumedhacentre@gmail.com